Katrina 5 years later: WIS looks back

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - Five years ago, Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Louisiana coast, packing winds of 125 miles per hour. Today, New Orleans and surrounding areas are still trying to recover.

Katrina is the most destructive storm on record in terms of economic losses. It caused $81 billion in damage. A lot of that destruction came once the storm had already passed, when levees began to break. Flood waters consumed about 80% of New Orleans, forcing people onto the rooftops of their homes.

More than 1,800 people died as a result of the storm and millions were displaced, according to the American Red Cross. Katrina evacuees dispersed to nearly every state in the U.S.

In Columbia alone, the Red Cross found shelter for about 200 families who evacuated the gulf coast. Many of them stayed in South Carolina.